Chambers Ireland CSR Awards 2019 (InBUSINESS)

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#CSRAwards2019 The 2019 CSR Awards are supported by:

@BAM_CSR

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elcome to the official magazine for the 2019 Chambers Ireland CSR Awards.

We have the pleasure of profiling the ambitious, innovative and practical projects shortlisted for this year’s CSR Awards through this official guide to tonight’s ceremony. Over 70 projects are blazing a trail across the Irish CSR landscape in this 16th edition of the Awards and tonight is all about celebrating this work and the depth of CSR activities across the country.

Everyone interested in CSR will be aware of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the UN’s global priorities for the next decade, which are intended to set clear targets on what can be done to put the world on a more sustainable path.

While the expectations on business to engage further with the SDGs to meet societal challenges grow, investing in the solutions to our current challenges in line with the Goals demonstrates business leadership and forward thinking to negate future risk.

In a new initiative, this year’s Awards’ judging criteria incorporates greater prominence to the SDGs in the voting process, with specific marks for entries which showed engagement with the objectives of the SDGs. These Awards are run in partnership with BITC Ireland, sponsored by BAM Ireland and run in association with the Department of Rural and Community Development and as ever, we thank them for this support.

We would also like to thank our category sponsors, the Environmental Protection Agency for sponsoring the Excellence in Environment Award, One4all for sponsoring the Excellence in Workplace Award and our crystal sponsor House of Waterford Crystal who provide the beautiful crystal trophies for the award winners.

Furthermore, we would like to thank everyone on our judging panels for undertaking such an arduous task of selecting winners from among such a talent pool of CSR initiatives.

You can read our panel of judges’ impressions of the shortlisted projects on page 6.

With the benchmark raised even further this year by the quality of the applicant projects, the shortlisted projects are to be celebrated tonight along with the overall winners. The very best of luck to everyone for tonight’s Awards.

Siobhan Kinsella

Ian Talbot

President, Chambers Ireland

Chief Executive, Chambers Ireland

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2019 CSR Awards Shortlist

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Judging CSR

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2019 CSR Awards Companies Shortlisted

Published by: Ashville Media Group, Unit 55, Park West Road, Park West Industrial Park, D12 X9F9 Tel: +353 1 432 2200 | Email: info@ashville.com | Web: www.ashville.com On behalf of: Chambers Ireland, 11 St Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, D02 FY84 Tel: +353 1 400 4300 | Email: info@chambers.ie | Web: www.chambers.ie All articles © Ashville Media Group 2019. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from the publisher. Opinion and comments expressed herein are not necessarily those of Ashville Media or Chambers Ireland.

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Are the

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SDGs driving meaningful change?

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he year 2015 is one we will all remember as the year of sustainability. In December of that year, 195 countries committed to the bold ambition of the COP21 Paris Agreement on limiting climate change and earlier in September, over 150 world leaders adopted the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These were times of optimism about the future, of a shared agenda for humanity and of true partnership among people.

At a time when a few tweets can make the world change dramatically, one can wonder whether the euphoria of 2015 is diminishing and whether the SDGs have achieved something for the 2030 agenda of sustainable development. In particular, looking at businesses and their engagement with the SDG agenda, it is good to see where we go next with its implementation. At the end of the day, 11 years are left to ensure that the high ambitions we all share become a reality.

The SDGs are a complex mechanism comprising 17 goals, 169 targets and 230 indicators, periodic progress reviews (including the annual High Level Political

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Tomás Sercovich, CEO, Business in the Community Ireland, assesses the impact of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and the onus on businesses to be leaders of change.

Forum that just took place in July), Voluntary National Reviews issued by signatory nations and endless forums, conferences, papers, websites and national processes mirroring the global structure.

Within this complex structure, the role of business was clearly defined as a fundamental agent of change. If moral arguments about the common mission of eliminating poverty, child mortality and inequality were not sufficient, a compelling business case was put together by the Business and Sustainable Development Commission1, comprising top global CEOs. They identified US$12 trillion of business opportunities in the sustainable development economy. Investment using ESG–environmental, social and governance criteria, therefore oriented towards SDG priorities–reached a record high, having traded US$41.6 billion last year2.

If the business opportunity argument was not appealing, earlier this year a survey of 1,150 people in Ireland exposed that in times of uncertainty about the future, 75% expect

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Tomás Sercovich, CEO, Business in the Community Ireland CEOs to take the lead on change rather than waiting for government to impose it3. Millennials and Gen Z people entering the workforce are amongst those who feel very strongly about the need to act and the need to change.

Faced with this scale of unparalleled challenge and increasingly volatile world, what have the SDGs achieved to date?

“green wave”, there is a sense that we all must act together on these sustainability challenges. SDG 17 on partnerships for the goals is a change of model, and collaborative platforms become the norm to promote joined up action and increased impact.

disciplines in girls in local communities.

Fewer companies have taken an extra step and used the SDGs from an outsidein perspective to identify where they need to focus their programmes and initiatives and set targets4.

Even fewer companies have used the SDGs and agenda 2030 to revisit their business models and investments.

Unilever is a good example of this minority trend, where their brand portfolio is assessed not only on their financial performance but also on their contribution to society and the environment5. The acid test of the SDGs will be whether businesses are able to demonstrate how the SDGs are shaping the evolution of their business models, their decision-making and their product development.

There is a clear need for better articulating the role of the SDGs in strategy development. Companies need to better communicate their ambitions to truly realise sustainable development.

Cross-industry, geographical and crossvalue chain collaborations will be critical for designing a common roadmap for companies to embed the SDGs and use them as critical influencers of their strategic orientation.

In Business in the Community Ireland we are working with our member companies to help translate the SDG rhetoric into action through our Low Carbon Pledge6. Over 50 of Ireland’s largest companies have committed to measuring and reporting on their greenhouse gas emissions and have set targets for further reductions. Through our network, companies are collaborating with each other and developing initiatives to increase their impact and ambition.

• Sense of urgency: The year 2030 can feel like a long way to go in some aspects of sustainable development, but a clear timeline is forcing governments and civil society organisations to respond.

TOWARDS NEW BUSINESS MODELS? While the wide scope of the SDGs can appear to be disconnected from the reality of a business, the issues that the SDGs present are material issues that are challenging the role of business and its long-term viability and economic success.

For many businesses, the SDGs provided a useful narrative to align their programmes and activities.

Annual reports and websites for example clearly show the link between SDG 13 on climate action and measures taken by companies to reduce CO2 emissions, or SDG 4 on quality education and SDG 5 on gender equality with programmes to promote STEM

• Multi-dimensional appeal and collaboration: Whether it is the climate strike movement launched by Greta Thunberg or the results of the European elections in June and the

1. http://report.businesscommission.org/ 2. https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/ 2019-green-finance/ 3. https://www.edelman.ie/insights/ irish-people-want-businesses-and-ceos-drive-change 4. https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/sustainability/SDG/ sdg-reporting-2018.pdf 5. https://www.unilever.com/news/press-releases/2018/unilevers-sustainable-living-plan-continues-to-fuel-growth.html 6. https://www.bitc.ie/the-leaders-group/the-low-carbon-pledge/

• Vision: The SDGs have provided a universal and common language to define sustainable development and how it can be measured and evaluated. The SDGs as a global challenge demonstrate there are gaps in all countries and in all dimensions that need to be achieved.

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EXCELLENCE IN CSR COMMUNICATIONS

• Applegreen Driving Engagement and Awareness in our Communities • Coca-Cola #YouthEmpowered • Energia Energia’s Charity Starts at Home • European Recycling Platform Ireland Batteries for Barretstown

• Primark Our Promise. Their Future • RSM Ireland The 2018 RSM Ireland Charity Partnership with Peter McVerry Trust

EXCELLENCE IN COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP WITH CHARITY – MNC**

• Microsoft Ireland Digital Skills for All

• Boots Ireland Boots Ireland and the Irish Cancer Society

EXCELLENCE IN COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP WITH CHARITY – LIC*

• Cisco Systems Partnership with a Charity

• A&L Goodbody A&L Goodbody partnership with Social Entrepreneurs Ireland • Cork International Hotel Cork International Hotel & BUMBLEance Charity Partnership • Dalata Hotel Group Dalata Digs Deep • Earth’s Edge KPAP Equipment Lending Programme • Gala Retail Gala Retail’s Platinum Sponsorship of Special Olympics Ireland

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• Linesight Maths-Whizz: a Virtual Maths Tuition Programme

• Bank of Ireland The Great Bank of Ireland Backyard Blitz

• Gas Networks Ireland Biodiversity Enhancement Programme

• Earth’s Edge Explore, Experience, Evolve

• Hotel Doolin Green Team Work

EXCELLENCE IN ENVIRONMENT – MNC**

• Aldi Ireland Aldi Carbon Reduction Project • Astellas Ireland Astellas Leading light for Life - Striving for Sustainability

• Dell Creating Brighter Futures with Barnardos

• Fidelity Investments Ireland Fidelity Ireland’s Go Green Initiative

• Lidl Ireland and Jigsaw One Good Adult

• FoodSpace FoodSpace Ireland making a difference

• Qualtrics 5 For The Fight

• Tesco Ireland Tesco Ireland Waste Management Strategy ‘No Time for Waste’

• Tesco Ireland Tesco Ireland Raising Funds to Save Lives at Temple Street

EXCELLENCE IN COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERING – LIC*

EXCELLENCE IN ENVIRONMENT – LIC*

• Carbery Group Every Drop Counts

*Large Indigenous Company LIC | **Multinational Company MNC

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• Dawn Meats Dawn Meats Origin Green Strategy

• A&L Goodbody Volunteer Housing Law Clinic with Focus Ireland and Mercy Law

• KPMG KPMG’s BOLD GIRLS initiative

EXCELLENCE IN COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERING – MNC**

• Dell Legacy of Good, Making a Real Difference 2017-2018 • Intel Ireland Intel Involved Volunteers Making a Difference • Microsoft Ireland Microsoft Empowering Transformation at the Simon Community • Workday Giving & Doing

EXCELLENCE IN COMMUNITY - COMMUNITY PROGRAMME – LIC*

• A&L Goodbody A&L Goodbody’s Step Up Community Programme • Deloitte Deloitte’s Difference in Dublin 8

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• Gas Networks Ireland Energize • Holmes O’Malley Sexton HOMS Solicitors Transition Year Programme • Law Society of Ireland Diploma Centre Public Legal Education • Mason Hayes & Curran Engage & Educate Fund • National University of Ireland, Galway Community Knowledge Initiative • SSE Ireland Galway Wind Park Community Fund

EXCELLENCE IN COMMUNITY - COMMUNITY PROGRAMME – MNC**

EXCELLENCE IN WORKPLACE – LIC*

EXCELLENCE IN MARKETPLACE

• Arthur Cox The Arthur Cox Work Experience for All Programme

• A&L Goodbody ALG’s collaborative project with the Irish Refugee Council’s Independent Law Centre

• Collins McNicholas In Pursuit of Excellence in our Expanding Workplace • Energia Energia’s Values in Action Employee Awards • Gas Networks Ireland Walking the Talk – A study of the impact of coaching while walking

• Arthur Cox Arthur Cox and Amicus – Fighting for Justice on Death Row • Dawn Meats Dawn Meats sustainable sourcing • EirGrid Pilot EirGrid Community Fund, MullingarKinnegad • Energia Energia Netatmo

EXCELLENCE IN WORKPLACE – MNC**

EXCELLENCE IN DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

• Fidelity Investments Ireland The Fidelity Ireland Well4Life Program

• Dublin Bus Workplace Gender Transition Policy and Guidelines

• Veolia Ireland Mental Health First Aiders

• ESB ESB Traineeship Programme for People with Disabilities

• Tesco Ireland Tesco Community Fund in 2018

• VMware International The Cork Giving Network’s Mental Health Month

• Fidelity Investments Ireland Inclusive Workplace Fidelity Ireland

• VMware International Kickstart – Cloud Careers Program

• Workday Workday Wellbeing

• Johnson & Johnson J&J Campus Ireland WiSTEM2D

• Amgen Technology Amgen Dun Laoghaire’s CSR Programme • GSK Dungarvan Making a Difference • Intel Ireland Pride of Place

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• Microsoft Ireland One Microsoft Diversity and Inclusion • Version 1 The Version 1 Diversity & Inclusion Initiative

EXCELLENCE IN CSR BY AN SME

• Acorn Regulatory The Empower Initiative • Earth’s Edge Carbon Emission Offsetting • Easytrip Easytrip Supports Blood Bikes • Himalaya Yoga Valley Centre Cork Yoga Outreach Programme • MKO Cope Helping Hands Project • SECAD Partnership CLG Wild Work • Swords Pavilions Shopping Centre Make Nutrition Your Goal, Fuelling Your Futsal • Tico Mail Works Tico Mail Works Corporate Social Responsibility Improvement Campaign

LIC *Large Indigenous Company

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JUDGING

This year’s judges share their views on the merits of practising CSR in business.

Nina Arwitz – CEO, Volunteer Ireland “The potential for companies to have a real positive impact, in particular against the SDGs, is huge.

These awards raise the bar and shine a light on some really innovative and impactful work, and I hope they inspire many others to aspire to the same high standards. It’s an honour to be involved in the awards and get an insight into the breadth and depth of CSR in Ireland.”

Dr. Shane Colgan – Manager, Resource Efficiency Unit, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) “We are seeing increasing public and political focus on environmental topics such as climate change, pollinators and plastic pollution. It is inspiring to see companies and their employees looking beyond the bottom line and working to address the sustainability issues facing communities, locally and globally.

The EPA is pleased to sponsor these awards and to celebrate the successes of Ireland’s CSR leaders.”

Lorraine Corcoran – Director, Afanite Limited “It is fantastic to see the bar being raised as to what makes award-winning CSR. There were a number of standout entries from our judging round with each entry having thoroughly embedded CSR in their business. Highlighting and applauding this through the Chambers Ireland CSR Awards makes the judging process very rewarding.”

Sabina Cotter – Associate Director, DCU Educational Trust “It was a privilege to review such a diverse range of CSR programmes and initiatives. What really shone out was how engaged employees were in initiatives backed by the support and resources of their organisations.

There were also some specific programmes that really made me think, ‘Wow, that’s so innovative and impactful.

I believe we do have a long way to go in terms of reaching the sustainable development goals in Ireland but initiatives like the CSR Awards offer an opportunity to promote and share CSR excellence in Ireland.”

John Cunningham – Commercial Director, Morgan McKinley “CSR is firmly embedded in the DNA of businesses in Ireland, both domestic and international. Business leaders see the real benefits of having a competent and integrated CSR strategy. In a world where attracting and retaining talent is a major challenge, CSR is playing a real role in both attracting and retaining talent.

Again I say, we stand shoulder to shoulder with the best in the world when it comes to CSR.”

Deborah Dignam – Assistant Principal, Enterprise Initiatives Unit, Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation “What impressed me most as a judge this year was the passion and commitment shown on behalf of the applicants in leading change in their organisations and in turn delivering impact in society.

Towards Responsible Business, Ireland’s National Plan on CSR, sets out Ireland’s ambition to be ‘recognised as a Centre of Excellence for responsible and sustainable business practice through the adoption and implementation of best practice in CSR in enterprises and organisations’.”

Jim Gannon – CEO, Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland (SEAI) “The standard of entry this year was exceptionally high, and shows the huge strides Irish industry is making with CSR. The clear positioning of CSR as a core value driver within these businesses, as distinct from a simple reporting requirement, is also very evident and provides a lot of hope for the future.”

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Moira Grassick – Associate Director, Graphite HRM Ltd “The standard set by this year’s CSR applicants is incredible. It’s great to see so many businesses taking an active role in their CSR and making a positive impact. It goes to show that whether you’re a small or large business, your efforts still benefit the greater community.”

Tadhg Lucey – COO, BAM Civil “The quality of submissions made the judging for this year’s awards extremely challenging and spoke volumes on the positive impact of CSR initiatives undertaken by businesses across Ireland.

At BAM we believe in ‘Building the present, creating the future’, and the worthy nominees for overall winner have all demonstrated their ability to create a future that we can all be proud of.”

Éilis Murray - CEO, Philanthropy Ireland “It was inspiring to see so much good being achieved with great impact on society. The strategic element, where initiatives are approached with clear intent and purpose, knowing what it is that can be achieved, and committing to seeing it through are those that can make a real difference.

Businesses who give philanthropically, giving strategically, show real leadership in giving well.”

Dr. Emer Ní Bhrádaigh, Assistant Professor in Entrepreneurship, DCU “I was impressed by the wide variety of CSR projects, especially those that were well thought out, focussed, impactful and truly integrated with the communities and causes chosen. I would love to see more projects related to creativity, music and linguistic diversity, powerful elements of identity, belonging, health and self-confidence for all of us, whether staff volunteers or community members.”

Seònaid Ó Murchadha – Employment Facilitator, Fingal LEADER Partnership Ability Programme “I’m delighted to see the quality of this year’s entries. Embracing social responsibility and diversity has become an integral part of Irish business, leading to better and more sustainable practices.

Companies have realised the benefits of a diverse workforce and diversity of thought in decision making – it is a definite win-win for all stakeholders. Congratulations to all the shortlisted projects.”

Dr. Meredith Storey – Education Manager, SDG Academy, UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network “This was my first year judging with Chambers Ireland, and the experience was both enlightening and inspiring. So many of the submissions, across every single category, demonstrated a strong passion for sustainable development. As an educator, I find it extremely encouraging to see such striking examples of engagement and dedicated leadership across the Irish business community.”

Martin Tobin – CEO, European Recycling Platform (ERP) “I was impressed with the high standard of the entries compared to previous years. There were many innovative ideas that I have not seen before. The worthwhile work being done across the different sectors demonstrates the importance of CSR and the positive impact it has on social, cultural and environmental aspects of society. I highly commend all entrants for their good work.”

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CSR PARTNER PROFILE ARTHUR COX

Pillars in the Community Four pillars underpin a wide range of CSR activities at Arthur Cox

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he CSR programmes at Arthur Cox pay a fitting homage to the firm’s founder, who was ordained a priest after the death of his wife, and left to go on the missions to Zambia. Echoing the founder’s desire to give back, Arthur Cox trainees have set up a legacy project in his memory: around 20 travel to Zambia every summer to work with local development partners on projects including building schools and health centres. It is one of many projects that contribute to the law firm’s four CSR pillars—Charities, Volunteering, Commitment to the Environment and Pro Bono Work.

CHARITIES Every two years the staff are surveyed on which charities to support on their behalf, and meaningful relationships are formed.

“We try and have strategic partnerships with the charities so that we make a real difference to them. It isn’t just around financial donations. It’s about working with them on the volunteer side and understanding their organisation, which is why we have partnerships for more than two years,” explains Rachel Hussey, Partner and Chair of the firm’s CSR Advisory Board.

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Peter McVerry Trust, Jigsaw and the Jack and Jill Foundation were the most recent partners.

VOLUNTEERING “We have a huge amount of goodwill within the firm,” says Jean Maxwell, Corporate Social Responsibility Manager.

“Last year we organised 22 opportunities for people to get involved. We had over 300 members of staff who were involved in activities with partners ranging from Special Olympics to St Vincent de Paul.”

COMMITMENT TO THE ENVIRONMENT Arthur Cox has an ongoing commitment to improving sustainability in all aspects of their business. They have become one of the first professional services firms in Ireland to secure what is currently the highest international standard for certification of energy management. The firm has achieved ISO50001:2018 Energy System certification through its commitment to making efficient use of energy at their Dublin office, in order to conserve natural

resources and reduce carbon emissions. As a business that relies heavily on both paper and electricity, sustainable use of resources has become a priority at the firm. “We are proud to say that over the past 12 months we have gone from using, on average, 1,000 paper cups a day, and have managed to eliminate those by replacing them with ceramic mugs. It’s one small step that will hopefully have a big impact,” states Ms Maxwell. “Our next priority over the coming months is to eliminate all plastics throughout the

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building and all our catering suppliers are helping us with that.”

PRO BONO WORK The firm has recently appointed a full-time Pro Bono Associate to develop the amount and type of pro bono work being taken on.

“It can be challenging to find the type of work that we can do and that is interesting to people who want to do it,” admits Ms Hussey, “but the Amicus project fitted all those criteria.”

Amicus is a London-based charity which helps secure equal access to justice and proper legal representation for Death Row inmates in the United States. Arthur Cox staff in Ireland, along with many other top legal firms globally, contribute pro bono work. Alex McLean, Partner and Head of the firm’s Pro Bono Practice, reveals why this work is particularly impactful: “The data that we get out of the US shows that the Death Penalty is disproportionately imposed on the poorest and most vulnerable in society. One of the quotes you’ll often see on Amicus literature is “The Death Penalty is not reserved for the worst of the worst, but for the poorest of the poor.”

“The ability to make a difference for people charged with capital offences or on death row is extraordinary and is potentially lifesaving.” Mr McLean explains that it is possible to contribute to caseloads, even working from the other side of the Atlantic: “Fundamentally, in terms of the skill set that is required— working through evidentiary documents, working through court documents, collating data, feeding that in to the

defence teams—they are skills that people have here.

Everything is available online and we can provide assistance remotely.”

WORK EXPERIENCE FOR ALL Running since 2011, the Work Experience for All programme targets students from communities where there is not a tradition of further education, aiming to demystify the corporate world and demonstrate the advantages of continuing in education. “The Work Experience for All programme really resonates with us because, while we do have a really good work experience programme for Transition Year Students, we didn’t necessarily get applications from the type

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of schools that we would like to support. It’s more about us proactively looking for people who might benefit from work experience in the office,” explains Ms Hussey.

During four week-long programmes throughout the year, over 60 staff members volunteer their time to act as mentors, buddies and presenters to give the students an insight into the world of business and professional life.

“It’s one of the parts of my job that I really do enjoy,” Mr McLean reveals. “At the core of the programme is a desire to broaden horizons and break down barriers. Every now and again you get to the end of the week and someone will tell you, ‘I used to walk past this building and never imagined coming in here, but now I realise the people in here aren’t that much different to me.’”

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CSR PARTNER PROFILE GAS NETWORKS IRELAND

Energize Workshop at Gas Networks Ireland

CSR comes naturally to Gas Networks Ireland

Connecting over 700,000 homes and businesses across the country to the natural gas network, Gas Networks Ireland aims to keep sustainability and social responsibility at the core of all aspects of its operations.

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where it operates. In July, the organisation published its first Sustainability Report, aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which highlights the great sustainability work that took place across the organisation in 2018.

ENCOURAGING FUTURE ENGINEERS AND SCIENTISTS As a STEM-focussed company, Gas Networks Ireland looks to inspire the engineers and scientists of the future. Gas Networks Ireland’s long-term goal is to encourage more

students, particularly girls, to study STEM subjects at second-level and ultimately to pursue STEM careers in the future. In partnership with Junior Achievement Ireland, the organisation launched its new STEM-education programme, Energize, in the

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2018/2019 academic year, which was taught to over 5,000 6th class students in 19 counties. The programme— related to UN Sustainable Development Goal 4: Quality Education—looks at the fundamentals of science including renewable energy sources, the properties of light and the dangers of carbon monoxide.

This year, to increase engagement and awareness, the organisation sponsored a poster competition for all participants to demonstrate the dangers of carbon monoxide in their creative artwork. Speaking about the importance of STEM to the business, Louise Browne, Corporate Affairs Manager,

complements the existing primary school science curriculum. The programme is delivered with a hands-on approach inviting students to learn by doing fun experiments and exercises.”

As a passionate supporter of education, Gas Networks Ireland also supports literacy, employability, leadership development and business advice programmes.

ENHANCING BIODIVERSITY Through its comprehensive Biodiversity Enhancement Programme— related to UN Sustainable Development Goal 15: Life on Land—Gas Networks Ireland uses its extensive national network

Biodiversity Enhancement Programme said “Promoting STEM is a natural fit for Gas Networks Ireland. Not only does our Energize programme contribute towards ensuring that there is a sustainable supply of skilled STEM workers to support Ireland’s economic growth, it also

and stakeholder network to increase awareness about biodiversity and enhance biodiversity in local communities. Earlier this year, Gas Networks Ireland was announced as one of 14 founding members of the Irish Business and

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Biodiversity Platform, making a commitment in the ‘Our Seeds for Nature’ charter to protect nature and biodiversity.

Gas Networks Ireland actively engages with the local community to increase awareness of biodiversity, delivering workshops in primary schools and collaborating with Cork City Council to install a large bug hotel in Shalom Park, next to Cork HQ, to provide a resting place for pollinators in the urban environment. This year as part of a pilot initiative, two beehives were installed at one of the company’s gas stations.

Managed by employees from the Operations team, the first batch of honey is expected this summer. Employees have also participated in internal workshops and nature walks to learn more about biodiversity on their doorstep.

Environment Manager, Anne Moore says, “As a supporter of the AllIreland Pollinator Plan, the organisation identified that our large assets base is ideal for creating a network of pollinator-friendly habitats nationwide. By implementing biodiversity management initiatives including awareness initiatives with staff and our contractors, biodiversity awareness signage, planting wildflowers, installing bird boxes, and reducing pesticides and grass cuttings, we can have a real impact on enhancing biodiversity.

To date, biodiversity enhancement measures have been installed at a number of our gas sites across Ireland and two office locations in Cork and Dublin. Our Biodiversity Enhancement Programme connects us with the community and our employees with the shared goal of protecting nature”.

Walking the Talk Initiative

WALKING THE TALK Gas Networks Ireland employees are central to the success of the business and the organisation supports a number of wellbeing initiatives. This year, Gas Networks Ireland rolled out its Walking the Talk initiative— related to UN Sustainable Development Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being. The organisation undertook a trial of walking and talking coaching sessions, as a means of increasing clarity of thought and creative energy. In partnership with University College Cork, a study was carried out to collect and assess data to explore the benefits of coaching while walking instead of the more traditional style of sitting in an office environment. The research showed that there were many benefits to the walking and talking coaching style including increasing self-esteem for the participant, helping the participant to feel ‘cared for’ by their coach or mentor, building confidence and enabling the participant to better manage stress. Following the study Gas Networks Ireland, and the wider Ervia organisation, is looking to implement the initiative and to embed it in the organisation.

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CSR PARTNER PROFILE NUI GALWAY

Engaging with Community NUI Galway’s Community Knowledge Initiative opens up learning resources to local, national and global communities.

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he Community Knowledge Initiative (CKI) was established at NUI Galway in 2004 and originally funded by the Atlantic Philanthropies to foster and spread deeper commitments to community, civic engagement and social responsibility. A core function of the CKI has been to educate students for their role as active citizens and to ensure that the NUI Galway is a valuable resource to local, national and global communities.

NUI Galway was the first university in Ireland to develop this commitment and since that time other universities and institutes of technology have followed the path created by NUI Galway. Lorraine McIlrath, Director of CKI, says, “As a University in Ireland, we want to better serve community and society in a sustainable and meaningful way. NUI Galway Vision 2020 centralises the importance of civic engagement, volunteering, service learning, research and engagement with communities as hallmarks of the university experience and practice.”

Over the last fifteen years, the CKI has developed a series of pathways that

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connect the university, its staff and students to the community through civic engagement and social responsibility projects, including the ALIVE Volunteer Programme which has seen over 12,000 students volunteer in the community over the last decade; Community Service Learning which sees

NUI GALWAY VISION 2020 CENTRALISES THE IMPORTANCE OF CIVIC ENGAGEMENT, VOLUNTEERING, SERVICE LEARNING, RESEARCH AND ENGAGEMENT WITH COMMUNITIES AS HALLMARKS OF THE UNIVERSITY EXPERIENCE AND PRACTICE. 1,500 students undertake community projects every year; and the Youth Academy, a mini-university that caters for 10-12 year olds and provides 25 courses every semester.

In response to the needs outlined by partner community organisations, CKI created bespoke modules of service learning, which allow students to connect theory with real life practice in the community.

Another successful project is Café Saol, which was established on a pilot basis in 2015. It is the first and only social enterprise café on a higher education campus in Ireland, and it became

a mainstream NUI Galway catering facility in 2018.

The café promotes inclusive employment practices for those marginalised from employment.

Dr. McIlrath says, “All of the activities are only possible because of the community of practice approach we adopt to deliver all of our programmes. The CKI is a very small team (five full time staff and three parttime contract) so we work in partnership with the 3,000 staff within the university.

Our aim is to develop an ethos of engagement across the university, working in collaboration with others to create larger social change.”

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CSR PARTNER PROFILE TESCO

Fundraising for Temple Street at Liffey Valley during Great Irish Bake.

A little help goes a long way At Tesco Ireland, every little help can make a big difference

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t Tesco, we believe that every little help makes a big difference. It drives what we do every day for our colleagues, in the hundreds of communities where we operate, and for the breadth of customers we serve. It’s at the heart of our CSR and sustainability approach, the Little Helps Plan, which sets out how Tesco will make a difference to the social and environmental challenges that matter most.

The Little Helps Plan helps create a business where colleagues can get on, whatever their background; helps customers make healthier choices and enjoy good quality, sustainable products, at affordable prices; works to ensure no food that could be eaten is wasted; reduces the environmental

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impact of our packaging and supports the communities we serve.

With over 13,000 employees across 151 stores, a distribution centre and head office based in Dublin, Tesco is one of Ireland’s largest private sector employers.

We know we can make the greatest contribution by focusing on our people, our products and our places.

OUR PEOPLE Our colleagues are at the heart of our business and

we’re proud to empower them to be who they are at work. We want everyone to feel welcome at Tesco and are developing a diverse team that represents our evolving communities and a culture that builds self-esteem and celebrates our colleagues’ unique individualities.

We’re proud to have received the Great Place to Work accreditation for the second consecutive year and we have also been acknowledged as one of

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thirteen Best Workplaces for Women in Ireland.

We believe in treating people with respect and giving everyone an opportunity to get on.

We’re proud signatories of the Diversity Charter Ireland and the 30% Club, which promotes female representation in business at leadership level.

OUR COMMUNITY At Tesco, we have no time for waste. We believe it’s simply not right that perfectly edible surplus food should go to waste when there are people in our communities who need it. We were the first Irish retailer to launch a national surplus food donations programme with FoodCloud and continue to work to donate surplus food from our stores and distribution centres to those in need in our communities.

Since 2014 we’ve donated

8 million meals to over 350 community groups across Ireland, in partnership with FoodCloud.

Through the Tesco Community Fund we have donated over €4million to 13,000 local community projects since 2014. In each store, we donate up to €1,000 every 8 weeks to three good causes, with customers choosing how we allocate the donations by voting with blue tokens each time they shop.

Our colleagues and customers have raised €4.4 million for our charity partner Temple Street since 2014. This charity partnership sees funds raised by Tesco colleagues, customers and Temple Street supporters used specifically to help the children’s hospital to purchase lifesaving medical equipment for its patients.

The 30% Club Ireland welcomed Tesco Ireland as its 250th supporter this summer. Pictured are Carol Andrews, 30% Club Ireland Country lead and a Managing Director a BNY Mellon Ireland and Kari Daniels, CEO, Tesco Ireland

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Supporting FoodCloud and COPE Galway

PACKAGING Our target is to ensure we never use more packaging than is needed. Where needed, because it serves a clear purpose like reducing food waste or to protect a product in transit, we do our best to ensure that what we do use is from sustainable sources and where possible, goes on to be reused or recycled.

We have set challenging targets that will deliver a step change in how much plastic waste we generate: by year end we will remove hard to recycle materials (e.g. PVC and Polystyrene) from our own brand packaging and by 2025 all our packaging will be fully recyclable, all our paper and board will be 100% sustainable and we will halve packaging weight in our business.

Through our membership of Repak we help fund the recycling of the packaging on products the consumer buys in our store. We’re proud signatories of the Repak Packaging Pledge.

ENVIRONMENT We want to become a zero-carbon business by 2050. Since 2016, we’ve

made significant energy efficiency upgrades to the fridge, lighting and heating systems across our stores.

All the electricity we use in our operations is from 100% renewable sources.

We’re one of 50 leading Irish companies to have signed the Business in the Community Low Carbon Pledge–committing to halve our direct carbon footprint between now and 2030.

We’ve also invested in a suite of energy measures to cut energy usage. This investment combined with a focused energy-management strategy has delivered an overall reduction in electricity consumption by 24% over 5 years.

We’re committed to becoming a more sustainable business and acknowledge the important role we must play in supporting and encouraging our suppliers and customers to do same.

We’re proud of our commitment to sustainability and CSR, acknowledged through our inclusion on the shortlist for the Chambers Ireland Outstanding Achievement in CSR Award 2019.

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CSR PARTNER PROFILE BANK OF IRELAND

The Great Bank of Ireland Backyard Blitz Bank of Ireland’s colleagues swapped hedge funds for hedge clippers

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he Great Bank of Ireland Backyard Blitz was the largest ever Bank of Ireland volunteering project which saw hundreds of bank volunteers swap hedge funds for hedge clippers to give their older neighbours a ‘dig out’ in the garden. The gardening bonanza matched up bank employees with local older people who needed help keeping their gardens maintained.

The event was part of Bank of Ireland’s wider commitment to Age Action as one of its three flagship charity partners in Ireland.

The partnership, which commenced in May 2017, aims to support older people to remain active in their communities and to stay connected. The overall partnership combines volunteering, fundraising and financial support, as well as providing teaching on the basics of the internet and digital world.

The inaugural event took place in July 2017. In 2018, over 22 and 23 June, over 450 Bank of Ireland colleagues, Age Action teams and gardening experts

mobilised in Dublin, Cork and Galway to mow the lawns, trim the hedges and generally brighten up the gardens, and the lives, of hundreds of older people.

The Backyard Blitz supported colleagues in making a tangible impact on the lives of older people in their communities, aligning with Bank of Ireland’s strategy of partnering with organisations that complement its responsible business approach for customers and colleagues in communities throughout Ireland.

The Backyard Blitz allowed the reach and impact of Age Action’s ongoing ‘Care & Repair’ programme to be boosted. The Age Action helpline receives numerous requests from older people for help with gardening tasks. In discussing the potential for Bank of Ireland colleagues to use their volunteering day to create a positive impact for Age Action and its beneficiaries, it was decided that most impact could be achieved through a large-scale gardening initiative. The Blitz was at a scale whereby

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gardens that required major work could be tackled, far beyond what is offered through the ordinary Care & Repair service. Discussing the initiative, Backyard Blitz Ambassador Dermot Bannon said, “The Bank of Ireland Backyard Blitz initiative is a fantastic way to support communities and I am very

proud to be involved. As an architect, I know from experience that once a space looks well, people are more inclined to use it and enjoy it.

Strong communities are built on strong community spirit and this initiative from Age Action and Bank of Ireland will make a real impact for those involved.”

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CSR PARTNER PROFILE KPMG

Celebrating female role models KPMG’s BOLD GIRLS workshops brought books with inspiring female characters to primary schools.

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f you can’t see it, you can’t be it,” is an oft-quoted phrase when it comes to the importance of positive role models, particularly when it comes to girls and women who may be forging a new path in terms of participation in the workforce, right up

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to senior leadership and board membership. In a world that was traditionally male-dominated, art reflects life, and the statistics speak to this.

A 2011 Florida State University study of 5,600 children’s books published in the 20th century found

a huge gender imbalance.

Male characters were central in 57% of books, while only 31% had female central characters.

Furthermore, when Time magazine listed the 100 best children’s books of all time, only 53 had females that speak. According to

SeeJane.org “Occupational Aspirations 2013” study, across children’s media only 19.5% of female characters hold jobs or have career aspirations versus 80.5% of male characters. The gender imbalance is clear. “This all contributes to a sense of unimportance amongst girls and a sense of privilege amongst boys,” states Karina Howley, Head of Corporate Citizenship & Diversity at KPMG Ireland. Looking to tackle this inspired a project that KPMG created in conjunction with Children’s Books Ireland (CBI), an organisation they long had connections with for book gifting and other initiatives.

To celebrate the centenary of women’s suffrage in Ireland in 2018, CBI planned to print a reading guide containing books about, written by, and illustrated by women. Out of discussions about the reading guide with

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KPMG, the idea of the BOLD GIRLS workshop series grew.

Karina recalls, “Here at KPMG we are all about skillsbased volunteering and we wanted to get this message out there. Children’s Books Ireland had suggested we sponsor sending the reading guide out to all schools but we felt that wasn’t handson enough. We wanted to deliver messages ourselves, so we came up with the idea of our employees delivering a series of workshops.”

BOLD GIRLS workshops consisted of one class per week over a four-week period, given by volunteers from KPMG, looking at female characters in literature, fairytales and history, and aiming to spark debate. “It’s getting them to think,” says Karina, “maybe there’s a way the girl could be empowered without being saved by the prince!”

The aim of the workshops is to break down societal barriers and to instil confidence in girls by showing them female characters in children’s books with passion, power and opinions, addressing at a young age some of the issues that stand in the

way of women achieving their ambitions.

“The target age is second and third class, seven and eight year olds,” notes Karina. “Research will tell you that’s the age group where you can make a massive difference if you can get them to enjoy reading.”

The launch of the scheme was aptly timed to coincide with both International Women’s Day and World Book Day, which fell within a week of each other. After tremendously positive feedback, it was then

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run again twice over the following academic year.

The engaging interactive workshops, along with materials and collateral, were designed in conjunction with experts from CBI, and delivered by 60 KPMG volunteers around the country. “We’re number two in Ireland in terms of employee volunteer hours,” reveals Karina. “Some people are engaged in lots of different things. We’re lucky that we have a very young and vibrant workforce.

Usually when I send out an email looking for volunteers I am inundated, because people want to be involved.”

The BOLD GIRLS workshops have now been delivered to 32 different primary school classes in Dublin, Cork, Galway and Belfast—typically in DEIS schools—and impacted over 800 students, with over 1,000 books donated.

The BOLD GIRLS programme forms a perfect alliance with KPMG’s Corporate Citizenship approach, not only directly aligning with its literacy programme and encouraging

students to read (Sustainable Development Goal 4: Quality Education) but also aligning with KPMG’s Inclusion and Diversity strategy by promoting gender equality and focusing on females (Sustainable Development Goal 5: Gender Equality).

The initiative taken

by KPMG Ireland has impressed and influenced their colleagues worldwide, as Karina reveals, “I presented this to our global network at KPMG and feedback from other countries was really positive.”

KPMG offices in UK, Spain, Poland, China, Australia, Mexico and Brazil all requested the material to use in their education programmes, and KPMG Ireland has shared its Volunteer Guides and four-module slide deck to use with their local volunteers. This response is testament to timeliness, relevance, innovation and effectiveness of this programme—it is a great way of promoting both literacy and gender diversity engagement.

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CSR PARTNER PROFILE ENERGIA

Prioritising society and the environment Energia’s commitment to addressing climate change is part of its positive impact strategy

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nergia is committed to operating in a socially, environmentally and ethically responsible manner. It aims to make a positive contribution to the communities in which it operates by helping to address climate change and empower its staff to support community activities and initiatives.

A CSR priority for the Group is to also to ensure the safety of employees, contractors and the general public through the promotion of a positive health and safety culture.

The Group is NSAI certified to ISO 45001:2018 recognising the standards of its health, safety and environmental systems.

Environmental CSR priorities within the Group include investing in renewable technology and the promotion of energy efficiency solutions for all customers.

Energia promote energysaving ideas to its customer through the provision of energy efficient advice, grants and other valueadded services. According

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to Gary Ryan, Managing Director, Energia Customer Solutions, “In the past two years in the commercial sector, we have provided over 430 energy efficiency projects with grant funding of €1.7m with an estimated energy savings of 85 GWh and over 15,000 tonnes of CO2. In the residential sector Energia provided over 12,000 projects with grant funding of €4.8m with an estimated energy savings of 40 GWh and over 8,000 tonnes of CO2.”

Energia have direct investment in, and contract with a range of renewable generators for the production of low carbon electricity which can be supplied to customers. Its renewable portfolio currently generates around 2,100GWh offsetting the emission of almost 683,000 tonnes of CO2 per annum. The Group also continues to invest in new innovative renewable technology solutions including bioenergy.

Energia’s new €50 million bioenergy facility at Huntstown in Dublin will have the ability to accept up to 100,000 tonnes of

waste per annum from the Greater Dublin Area.

This will be processed into renewable biogas and used to generate electricity for homes and businesses throughout Ireland, as well as producing organic fertiliser as a by-product.

Through its community involvement policy, the group seeks to make a positive impact on the communities in which it operates.

Energia wind farms operate Community Benefit Funds.

During the last financial year, over €580,000 was available in grants from these funds that benefited the localities in which it operates. In addition to this, Energia has donated another €158,000 to initiatives including sustainable food programs, Grow It Yourself, Seachtain na Gaeilge, Christmassy Homes and donations to local charities.

The Group seeks to support charities which its employees, customers and suppliers can relate to and where it can make a difference by raising public awareness as well as funding. Staff select one Charity Partner every year to support; last year they worked with Inner City Helping Homeless and this year are working with Dogs Trust Ireland.

Gary Ryan

THE POSITIVES OF CSR Mr Ryan says, “There are many positives to engaging in CSR and it is an important cornerstone of our commitment to the communities we serve and broader Energia Group corporate strategy. As a 100% green energy supplier, we invest in the well-being of communities and their sustainability enables us to continue to grow as a business.”

“CSR has become increasingly relevant in the corporate environment over the past several years, and today it is no longer a ‘nice to have’, rather a requirement.

This means it needs to be strategically guided and in line with the core objectives of the business,” he continues. “Overall, I believe that a thoughtful CSR strategy can improve an organisation’s brand

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Huntstown bioenergy

and reputation, contribute to employee recruitment and retention, and make a tangible difference to financial performance.”

Employees are strongly involved in all aspects of the CSR Programme. “From our Green Team, working with employees to help reduce energy consumption, to our Charity Committee to our e-Bike Club, employees are leading the way and delivering initiatives,” says Mr Ryan.

THE CSR JOURNEY Mr Ryan advises any company starting on their CSR journey that, “A CSR strategy must meet the needs of the organisation. I would advise any company looking at CSR to take a step back and first look at what its organisational objectives are in the short-, medium- and long-term.

CSR is a commitment, so it is important to understand the cost and resource inputs that will yield medium- to long-term benefit. Identify

the relevant external stakeholders and how CSR activity will meet their needs—the community benefit funds we run across the island of Ireland are a good example of this.

We provide vital funding for local organisations to better their community, whether it is in the arts, sports, education, local infrastructure etc.”

He continues, “Finally, I would advise any company undertaking CSR to look for the opinions of their staff and the communities they are looking to serve. By engaging colleagues you are driving active buy-in and through engagement with external stakeholders at a community level, you are ensuring you will meet their needs via the CSR strategy.”

“It’s the right thing to do, it makes sense for every business,” he concludes.

“CSR is intrinsically linked to our business ambition and the vision we have for the business in the mediumto long-term. Empowering

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customers to use renewable technology will make a positive and lasting impact on the environment, our business and our staff.

We’re very proud to say that through our continued investment in renewable energy and customer solutions, we have been able to create employment across the island of Ireland.”

Energia Group recently announced an investment

of over €3 billion in Irish renewable energy generation and related systems over the next 5 years. The new investment programme

by Energia Group is called ‘Positive Energy’. It will create 200 new jobs directly across the Energia Group and an estimated 3,000 to 5,000 construction jobs over the duration of the programme. The programme will be implemented across a range of major renewable energy projects including onshore and offshore wind farms, solar power, hydrogen fuel generation, bio-energy facilities and the smart grid. It is in line with the Government of Ireland’s commitment to increase the amount of electricity generated from renewable sources from 30% now, to 70% by 2030. Energia Group anticipates that this new investment will add up to 1.5 GW (1,500 MW) of renewable generation to the grid over the five-year programme and contribute to further sustainability in Ireland’s energy supply and to the achievement of Ireland’s climate change reduction targets.

Meenadreen wind turbine

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SPONSOR PROFILE BAM Ireland

Building Ireland

From infrastructure to iconic buildings, BAM has been building Ireland and shaping society for over 60 years.

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t BAM, we have spent over 60 years shaping the face of Ireland, constructing some of the nation’s outstanding infrastructure and creating some of the country’s most iconic buildings. During this time, BAM has placed CSR right at the heart of our work, helping to benefit society by providing value through innovative, sustainable and long-lasting projects.

To play our part in creating a brighter future, our goal as a business is to attain a Net Positive Impact on climate change, resources and people by 2050. BAM’s dedication to tackling climate change is clear and we are committed to reducing carbon intensity across our operations by 50% by 2030. This is in addition to our aims to source 100% sustainable timber by 2020 and procure all of our electricity from renewable sources by 2030. Looking even further ahead, we aim to convert our motor vehicle fleet to electric by 2040.

At BAM safety is paramount. BAM’s ‘Your Safety Is My Safety’ initiative encourages all who step on to our sites and offices to look after not only their own safety, but also the safety of those around them. It aims to ensure that everyone goes home safe at the end of the day.

This year Royal BAM Group celebrates

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its 150th Anniversary. To mark this, BAM has planted 150,000 trees worldwide throughout 2019. As part of this, around 100 BAM Ireland volunteers participated in the all-island project helping to plant 9,000 trees around Ireland in Wicklow,

Antrim, Fermanagh and Cork.

Earlier this year more than 150 BAM staff again took part in the Waterford Greenway challenge to help raise €25,000 for Barretstown children’s charity. In August we sponsored the BAM Cork City Sports International Athletics Meet where world class athletes from the US, South Africa and the UK competed in track and field events at CIT, helping to inspire the next generation of young Irish athletes.

In addition to its CSR efforts, BAM is undertaking some of Ireland’s most ambitious construction projects. In Dublin, the New Children’s Hospital, when complete, will be one of the most technologically advanced hospitals in the world, caring for Ireland’s future generations.

Our Boland’s Quay development in Dublin sees BAM combining the past with the future to transform one of Dublin’s historic sites into a home for one of the world’s largest tech leaders.

In Cork, our Navigation Square development is the largest and most significant office development to be undertaken in Cork City’s commercial centre. Facing this across the River Lee is Horgan’s Quay, an exciting urban redevelopment, which will host homes, offices, shops, restaurants, pubs and a hotel.

The new M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy Motorway PPP Scheme opened ahead of schedule in July. This 27-kilometre motorway has cut travel times from Dublin to Wexford by up to half an hour.

We believe that it is the responsibility of businesses to ensure their work has a positive impact on the environment and communities. This is why BAM leads by the mantra “Building the present, creating the future”.

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SPONSOR PROFILE Waterford Crystal

Inside the House of Waterford Crystal

Luxury crystal made by skilled craftsmen in the heart of Waterford City.

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luxury collection of the finest crystal continues to be made by skilled craftsmen at the House of Waterford Crystal factory situated in the heart of Waterford City, in Ireland’s Ancient East. A significant tourist attraction, the House of Waterford Crystal welcomes 200,000 visitors annually from across the world.

GUIDED FACTORY TOUR

Honda Classic and the Masters Snooker trophy to name just a few. Waterford Crystal also designed the spectacular Times Square Ball – a crystal ball which forms a prominent part of a New Year’s Eve celebration in Times Square in New York, colloquially known as the ball drop.

There is huge pride in Waterford Crystal throughout Ireland and it is little wonder that it is one of the most popular items used to mark such special occasions.

The guided factory tour is a unique and captivating experience that enthrals visitors of all ages, both national and international. The tour – which takes approximately one hour – allows visitors to understand each stage of production.

They witness how Waterford Crystal pieces are crafted from initial design right up to the final engraving of the piece. Every year the House of Waterford Crystal melts more than 750 tonnes of crystal, using traditional and cuttingedge manufacturing techniques. On completion of the tour, visitors can experience over 12,000 sq. ft. of crystal heaven in the largest retail and brand showcase of Waterford Crystal in the world. Our product range includes Waterford Crystal, House of Waterford Crystal, Jeff Leatham, Marquis, Elegance, Lighting and our beautiful Waterford Crystal Jewellery Collection.

A lot of thought goes into our products, which are inspired by Irish heritage, by our landscape, our music and the arts. It is not just about the amazing shapes or the designs of the products but the stories behind those designs. In many cases these designs reflect Irish culture in terms of castles, music and art.

CORPORATE & SPORTS Our corporate and gift awards program caters for rewarding employees or clients.

We can customise a piece from our core range that can allow us to create a unique message or logo on the item. Our worldwide shipping service allows you the flexibility to deliver in 24 or 48 hours to Ireland, UK or USA. Our dedicated Sales Manager Tom Walsh can be contacted at tom.walsh@fiskars.com Contact: waterfordvisitorcentre.com houseofwaterfordcrystal@fiskars.com Tel: + 353 (0)51 317000

WORLD SPORTS Waterford Crystal continues to provide some of the most prestigious trophies to the world’s great sporting events, made at the facility. The list of famous trophies produced by Waterford Crystal for the sports industry alone is simply staggering; including the Irish Open Trophy, the

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SPONSOR PROFILE One4all

Celebrating 10 years of Cycle4Haiti Looking back at a decade of the annual Cycle4Haiti charity event

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his May, at 6:30am in a car park on the outskirts of Dublin, almost 200 cyclists gathered to prepare for a cycle. With breakfast bars consumed, muscles stretched and music pumping, they set off on a 200km journey to Galway, for the tenth and final Cycle4Haiti event.

Cycle4Haiti was originally conceived by One4all founder Michael Dawson after he and a small group of EY entrepreneurs visited Haiti in 2007. They created the Soul of Haiti Foundation, an Irish non-profit organisation focused on empowering communities in Haiti through social entrepreneurship. Michael’s experiences in Haiti motivated him to create an ongoing fundraising initiative that would continue to support the people of Haiti for years to come. With this in mind, the team at The Gift Voucher Shop (GVS) conceived of an annual cycling event that would encourage cyclists to challenge themselves and raise money for a great cause. Drawing

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on the support of An Post (the Irish Post Office) as well as many suppliers, clients and business partners, GVS set about organising a weekend cycling event.

In May 2010, the same year that a catastrophic earthquake hit Haiti, destroying over 250,000 homes and affecting over 3 million inhabitants, a small crew of cyclists set off from

Dublin, having raised money from family and friends to help support the relief effort. At first, the event consisted solely of One4all staff members and a few friends of the company. Less than twenty people (some in fancy dress!) cycled 200km from Dublin to Galway over the course of two days.

As the years passed, more and more cyclists took part. Word-of-mouth about the quality of the cycle, combined with publicity from GVS’s PR firm, PSG, caused the event to grow beyond all expectations. By 2014, over 300 people were signing up for the cycle every year.

The massive increase in participation over the years necessitated all hands on deck in the One4all offices, with a core team of a dozen committed staff members organising everything. The Irish Red Cross was enlisted to support cyclists on the road with any injuries, motorcycle outriders kept the route clear and safe, and support vans supplied food, drink and encouragement.

Hotels were organised for all riders, establishing the Cycle4Haiti as a fullyserviced, fun and safe event.

Sponsors like Country Crest, Brewin Dolphin, Crowley Carbon, Aspire, Netwatch, Halfords and others helped support the event by supplying water bottles, cycle jerseys, roadside assistance and more, making sure that all participants had everything they needed to cycle across the country successfully and safely.

All that effort paid off, and for ten years the Cycle4Haiti ran every May, bringing together cyclists from around the country and overseas to take part and raise funds. Keen cyclists joined with amateurs, at least one relationship was formed, and many good times were had by hundreds of participants. As the cycle entered its Grand Finale in 2019, almost 200 people arrived in Galway to celebrate the incredible work and funds raised over the years.

In total, Cycle4Haiti raised over €1 million for the Soul of Haiti Foundation and Haven Partnership. As the single largest fundraising event for the Foundation, One4all are proud to have supported the re-development of Haiti, helping its citizens recover from natural disasters, start businesses and support their communities.

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Applegreen

Coca-Cola

Driving Engagement and Awareness in Our Communities

#YouthEmpowered

The Charitable Fund celebrates 10 years since its establishment in 2009. CSR communications is essential to Applegreen enabling the company to tell its story to demonstrate to staff, suppliers and customers that they are at the heart of its business vision.

The Charitable Fund programme’s success is driven by Applegreen’s highly engaged employees. Greater employee awareness and involvement with charity partners is supported by the programme’s internal communications strategy. In 2018, Applegreen organised approximately 125 collections and events throughout the year improving employee engagement, increasing both awareness of the charity partners and donations to them, ensuring customers and suppliers feel connected and empowered.

Microsoft Ireland Digital Skills for All

Established in 2017, the #YouthEmpowered programme supports 16-30-year-olds, who are not in education or employment, across Ireland. It seeks to give young people access to the life and business skills which they will need to transition into work, helping them achieve their goals. The initiative provides free self-development courses at centres nationwide, which help participants discover the careers which are good fits for their personalities. Coca-Cola HBC provides access to Youth Coaches through the Digital Hub–an eLearning platform available for free to jobseekers–and classroom sessions. The campaign has achieved 15.3 million media impressions and since its creation, with 1,300 people benefiting from #YouthEmpowered training.

Energia Energia’s Charity Starts at Home

Energia’s initiative, Charity Starts at Home, integrated two parallel communications campaigns over November and December 2018.

Through Charity Starts at Home, Energia supported their Charity Partner, Inner City Helping Homeless (ICHH), while also donating 6,000 to charity through the Ireland’s Most Christmassy Homes (IMCH) initiative.

Through highly creative and carefully planned comms, together with an aggressive execution plan across multiple channels, Energia saw incredible customer response rates, the highest employee interaction for the year and fantastic stakeholder and agency collaboration. Energia donated a total of over 10,000 to both ICHH and the winning charities of IMCH. Furthermore, the initiative achieved a PR value of 73k that comprised of 49 news articles, 27 publications and 8 influencers.

European Recycling Platform Ireland

Microsoft’s mission is to assist every person worldwide to achieve and do more using the power of technology.

With this mission in mind, Microsoft Ireland have developed a digital skills programme in Ireland to ensure that young people have the tools and inspiration to unlock the opportunities that new technologies afford. Supporting and developing initiatives including DreamSpace, Education Suite, Hour of Code and Girls in ICT Day, allows us to advance youth development, mentorship, education and gender equality, all of which are part of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

Microsoft Ireland want our youth to feel empowered to build a digital future and help them pursue their ambition across all industries.

Batteries for Barretstown

ERP Ireland worked with The Reputations Agency to create a communications strategy to increase the number of batteries recycled through its collection points. Almost 50% of batteries sold in Ireland end up in landfill because they’ve been thrown out in domestic waste, so the valuable materials inside are lost forever and when batteries are disposed incorrectly their corrosive materials can be harmful to the environment.

With these business challenges in mind, ERP Ireland devised a campaign to promote ‘Batteries for Barretstown’ that increased battery collections by 45%, surpassing the collection rate required for European member states (45%) and reaching a collection rate of 64% | CSR AWARDS 2019

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A&L Goodbody A&L Goodbody partnership with Social Entrepreneurs Ireland

A&L Goodbody (ALG) supports Social Entrepreneurs Ireland (SEI) as part of their Step Up community programme. Employment is a key focus of the Step Up programme which addresses the social issue of unemployment in the local community.

ALG began supporting SEI in 2007 through the provision of in-depth pro bono legal advice and assistance in relation to its own corporate affairs.

Since 2012, ALG has been supporting SEI through pro bono legal advice for them as an organisation and for the social enterprises they support; volunteering on panels for the SEI awards selection and judging process; and through the provision of core funding annually.

Cork International Hotel

Dalata Hotel Group Dalata Digs Deep

Cork International Hotel & BUMBLEance Charity Partnership

Cork International Hotel partnered with BUMBLEance for a two-year period, 20172018. BUMBLEance is the official Children’s National Ambulance Service of Ireland and fully self-funded in the service they provide for very ill children all around Ireland. This project was to build awareness in the Cork Community and to fundraise over 200k.

Over this period, Cork International Hotel worked alongside BUMBLEance to engage the community and raise funds to put Cork’s own BUMBLEance vehicle on the road.

During this period the team at the hotel put on numerous events designed to drive both revenue and also awareness. Each year the hotel raised funds through new events such as the Cork Car Show, Halloween Tea Parties and an Annual Dinner Dance.

24 *Large Indigenous Company LIC

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In 2015 Dalata Hotel Group launched its charity partnership “Dalata Digs Deep” with CMRF Crumlin, who raise vital funds for Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin and The National Children’s Research Centre. To date, over 750,000 has been raised through fundraising events across 31 hotels in the Republic of Ireland. To date, Dalata have funded 100% of two research projects into Neuroblastoma until 2020 and 2021. A third research project was presented on childhood brain tumours and personalised treatments and Dalata have already surpassed the funds needed for this project. Dalata have committed to continued fundraising for 2019 and a fourth research project is being presented.

Earths’ Edge KPAP Equipment Lending Programme

Earth’s Edge is Ireland’s first fully licensed adventure travel company.

At 5,896m, climbing Kilimanjaro is a serious challenge for all climbers especially the porters who have the additional task of carrying heavy loads up the mountain.

The Equipment Lending Programme was set up to help the porters who work on Africa’s highest mountain. Earth’s Edge have partnered with Kilimanjaro Porters Assistance Project (KPAP) an American-run, Tanzanian-based NGO who have an equipment lending programme in place for porters. Earth’s Edge have sent 20 duffel bags of equipment from Ireland with their climbing teams in 2017, over 25 bags were donated in 2018 and they are on course to better this again in 2019!

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Gala Retail

Linesight

Primark

RSM Ireland

Gala Retail’s Platinum Sponsorship of Special Olympics Ireland

Maths-Whizz: a Virtual Maths Tuition Programme

Our Promise. Their Future

The 2018 RSM Ireland Charity Partnership with Peter McVerry Trust

Gala retail entered its fifth partnership year with Special Olympics Ireland in 2019, supporting 8,000 Irish athletes in Special Olympics clubs, helping them to train, compete and grow. For many athletes, Gala Retail helped them to realise their dream of representing Ireland at the Special Olympics World Summer Games. It’s a sponsorship that believes #EveryStepCounts for Ireland’s Special Olympics athletes in their quest to achieve their best, from the initial idea, to the campaign execution, from Olympic Games in LA 2015 to Olympic Games in Abu Dhabi 2019.

Linesight has partnered with the Irish Youth Foundation (IYF) to deliver an innovative numeracy programme for children living in neglected and vulnerable areas of Dublin. The national educational strategy has recognised that children from disadvantaged communities are more likely to experience numeracy difficulties, and this partnership has come up with an innovative programme to address this challenge. The programme uses a virtual maths tuition programme tailored to meet the unique needs of every child, called MathsWhizz. Research by Whizz Education conducted with over 12,000 students and verified by independent experts demonstrates that children who learn with the Math-Whizz Tutor for 45-60 minutes per week increase their math age by an average of 18 months in their first year.

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Primark x UNICEF, “Our Promise. Their Future”, is Primark’s first global charity partnership and aims to improve the lives of over 80,000 vulnerable children in Cambodia.

By working together with UNICEF and their partners, Primark’s support will help 9000 children go to school for the first time through multilingual and inclusive education, while also helping 28,000 children stay in education through improved hygiene facilities and scholarships, as well as helping 52,000 children to learn in safe environments by ending violence in classrooms.

Since May 2018 the lives of thousands of children in Cambodia as well as their families and communities have been impacted and improved. Primark and UNICEF continue to make good on their promise to create better futures.

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The 2018 RSM Ireland charity partnership with Peter McVerry Trust (PMVT) was established following a decision by the firm to focus their CSR efforts on one charity. A CSR committee was established which discussed potential charity partners. Members decided to support PMVT due the homelessness crisis being so prevalent.

RSM’s goal was to help PMVT to continue to provide their services through raising funds, contributing time to volunteer work and raising awareness of their work.

RSM’s fundraising events were dispersed throughout the year and included unplanned appeals during extreme weather conditions as well as planned events including the Calcutta Sportive, a volunteer day at the PMVT detox centre, a football championship and the RSM Golf Championship.

LIC *Large Indigenous Company

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The shortlist for the 16th edition of the CSR Awards leaves no doubt about the scale of ingenuity and resourcefulness of companies large and small across Ireland when it comes to new and visionary CSR projects.”

Ian Talbot, Chief Executive, Chambers Ireland

Boots Ireland

Cisco Systems

Dell

Boots Ireland and the Irish Cancer Society

Partnership with a Charity

Creating Brighter Futures with Barnardos

Boots and the Irish Cancer Society are working in partnership with a vision that every person in Ireland will have access to the best possible cancer services.The project aim is to support people living with cancer in Ireland and to promote prevention through the role of Boots Irish Cancer Society Information Pharmacist, while raising funds for the Night Nursing Service.

Boots colleagues have raised 1.6 million to date and have trained over 150 Boots Irish Cancer Society Information Pharmacists and over 100 Boots Irish Cancer Society Beauty Advisors.

For Daffodil Day 2019, Boots stores raised over 98,000 an increase of over 30% on the amount raised for Daffodil Day 2018.

26 *Multinational Company MNC

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COPE Galway and Cisco Galway have worked very closely together since the opening of the Cisco Galway offices in 2007. COPE is a charity that works locally with the homeless, victims of domestic abuse and the elderly. Cisco Galway helps them to do this by providing the man-power and donations to sustain these fantastic initiatives.

To quote Jacquie Horan, CEO of COPE Galway, “COPE Galway have benefitted from a close association with Cisco for many, many years.

The highlight for us is our annual Christmas Food and Donations Project– where up to 90 Cisco volunteers join us in the weeks leading up to Christmas to sort, pack and deliver over 300 hampers to families all over Galway.”

In 2017 Dell EMC partnered with Barnardos Children’s Charity to help create brighter futures for vulnerable children. The aim of the partnership is to help children in disadvantaged communities overcome a lack of access to quality education and technology, which can prevent young people from reaching their full potential.

Through the provision of Dell EMC’s technology and by harnessing the collective talents of their team members, they work with Barnardos to help provide Early Intervention and School Readiness Programmes.

They also developed a new Barnardos afterschool resource called CodeWork Club, a coding programme designed and delivered

by Dell EMC volunteers to close the digital divide for children with little or no access to technology learning.

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Lidl Ireland and Jigsaw

Qualtrics

Tesco Ireland

5 For The Fight

Tesco Ireland raising funds to save lives at Temple Street

One Good Adult

In 2018 Lidl partnered with Jigsaw, the National Centre for Youth Mental Health. Lidl pledged to raise 1 million over the next 3 years while also committing to raising awareness for youth mental health across Ireland by encouraging customers and colleagues to be One Good Adult to a young person– being there to listen, support and advise when times are tough. The One Good Adult campaign involved a bespoke and highly targeted radio campaign alongside an innovative pop-up café, pumpkin patch and host of fundraising initiatives raising awareness of the role One Good Adult can play in the life of a young person struggling with their mental health in Ireland.

5 For The Fight (5FTF) is an initiative created by Qualtrics to crowdfund for cancer researchers, aiming to raise 500,000 to hire a three-person cancer research team for three years, focused on creating new cancer immunotherapy treatments. Cancer immunotherapy treatments harness and enhance the powers of the immune system to fight cancer and represent the most promising new cancer treatment approach since the development of the first chemotherapies in the 1940s. The 5 For The Fight programme is investing in immunotherapy with the ultimate goal of having an impact on cancer treatments in the future.

Since launching in 2017, the initiative has had dramatic results hiring two cancer researchers based in Cork, who’ve already started their research into new treatments.

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The year 2018 marked the renewed and extended Tesco Ireland/Temple Street partnership.

Tesco decided on two key deliverables for 2018: to fund the purchase of a Speech and Language Therapy Nasendoscopy Stack System–to help children born with cleft palate and non-cleft palatal dysfunction– costing 107,195, and to raise over 4 million for Temple Street. Through their ‘Great Irish Bake’ event in April, Tesco colleagues contributed over 3,000 hours of their time, raising more than enough in just 6 hours (112,000) to fund the purchase of the Nasendoscopy Stack System. Through the Temple Street mascot Cedric the Bear, which sold out in Tesco stores, more than 4 million was raised for Temple Street.

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I am delighted to support the Annual Corporate Social Responsibility Awards which recognise the valuable work of organisations in Irish communities.”

Seán Canney TD, Minister of State for Rural and Community Development

MNC **Multinational Company

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Carbery Group

Dawn Meats

Every Drop Counts

Dawn Meats Origin Green Strategy

Every Drop Counts is a water conservation project undertaken by Carbery to dramatically reduce water usage across its main processing facility in Ballineen, Co. Cork.

The initial goal of the project was to reduce water abstracted from the Bandon river by 25%. In 2017 Carbery invested in Reverse Osmosis (RO) plants to concentrate whey permeate (residue from cheese making process) which enabled water to be recycled as well as various condensate streams on site. The system was restarted in March 2018 and has been operating since. On average over 1.4 million litres of water is saved daily through this project and phase 2 has commenced where they hope to save 2.4 million litres of water per day.

Dawn Meats has created a holistic sustainability strategy as part of its Origin Green commitment.

Origin Green is a sustainability programme developed by Bord Bia calling on the food industry to develop holistic plans for improving the sustainability of their industry. Dawn Meats sustainability strategy covers many environmental areas such as emissions, energy, water, waste and biodiversity, with its ambition increasing across all these areas.

Through the project, over the last six years, 3,000,000m3 of water (over 30,000 households’ usage for a year) and over 350,000 MWh of energy (approximately 19,000 homes’ energy use) have been saved and over 90,000 tonnes of emissions have been avoided (the equivalent of taking over 40,000 cars off the road for a year).

28 *Large Indigenous Company LIC

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Gas Networks Ireland

Hotel Doolin Green Team Work

Biodiversity Enhancement Programme

Gas Networks Ireland’s Biodiversity Enhancement Programme is a multi-faceted plan with a number of key features. Through its extensive national and stakeholder network, Gas Networks Ireland increases awareness about biodiversity nationally and in local communities.

In 2019, Gas Networks Ireland was announced as a founding member of the Irish Business and Biodiversity Platform, and a signatory of the ‘Our Seeds for Nature’ Charter, further cementing its commitment to protecting biodiversity. Gas Networks Ireland is committed to managing all of its infrastructure in line with biodiversity best practice by 2025, encouraging farmers to grow red clover as a feedstock crop, which is beneficial for bees and soil, and engaging with employees and the communities where it is based to enhance biodiversity.

Hotel Doolin is the only carbon-neutral hotel in Ireland (confirmed by Green Hospitality). The hotel opened the EcoBarn in March 2018. It is an A rated, 100% soundproof building with a sustainable heating and cooling system. Results for 2018 show that the hotel has reduced its Landfill per guest by 21% in the last 2 years. Food waste has decreased by 8% per cover in 2 years, the carbon footprint per guest has decreased by 16% in last 2 years and the litres of water per guest has decreased by 59% in last 2 years. Hotel Doolin has supported several charities in the last 13 years, having raised or donated 25k in the last 12 months.

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Astellas Ireland Astellas Leading Light for Life–Striving for Sustainability

The Astellas “Leading Light for Life–Striving for Sustainability” is an integrated project aimed at providing a better future for everyone, through responsible management of all activities associated with the manufacture of lifesaving innovative pharmaceutical products. Being “A Leading Light for Life” is a mantra that Astellas lives by in every aspect of its work. Through its “Striving for Sustainability” programme, Astellas has endeavoured to become an industry leader in energy and environmental management practices by significantly reducing carbon emissions, displacing their reliance on fossil fuels, reducing resource use and improving their energy efficiency. Astellas are leading the way to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly future.

Aldi Ireland

Tesco Ireland

Aldi Carbon Reduction Project

Tesco Ireland Waste Management Strategy ‘No Time for Waste’

Since 2012 Aldi has introduced several initiatives to minimise carbon emissions and streamline energy usage throughout the business through the Aldi Carbon Reduction Project. Major achievements through this project include; maintaining ISO 50001 certification, achieving the Carbon Trust Standard, achieving the Origin Green accreditation, committing to purchasing 100% green electricity, achieving carbon neutrality, signing the Business in the Community Ireland Low Carbon Pledge, investing in LED lighting and investing 4 million in environmentally friendly refrigeration systems, all of which have helped Aldi to achieve a 53% reduction of carbon emissions per square metre of sales floor compared with 2012.

Fidelity Investments Ireland Fidelity Ireland’s Go Green Initiative

Fidelity Ireland’s Go Green Initiative focuses on addressing environmental issues, educating employees on sustainability and leading the Ireland organisation in Fidelity’s global environmental sustainability efforts. The initiative is led by the passionate members of Fidelity’s Go Green Team, a self-organised, cross functional group of employees, who identify and implement specific solutions to help the organisation operate in a more sustainable fashion. In the last year, the Go Green initiative has led a number of successful campaigns including a 30% reduction in paper usage, a 94% overall recycling rate, installation of electric vehicle charge-points in all offices and the removal of all 1,000 employees’ desk bins as part of our Bin the Bin Day.

FoodSpace

A pioneer in tackling food waste and a business that is marking a decade of being zero waste to landfill, Tesco Ireland firmly believes it’s simply not right that perfectly good food should go to waste in its stores.

For that reason, Tesco’s No Time for Waste initiative has undertaken to ensure that no food suitable for human consumption goes to waste from Tesco stores by 2020. The first retailer in Ireland to publish its food waste data, the company has also committed to halving food waste across its business by 2030.

Tesco’s No Time for Waste surplus food donation programme helps over 350 local causes and charities nationwide.

FoodSpace Ireland making a difference

FoodSpace, a subsidiary of the Apleona HSG group, continues to lead by example when it comes to sustainability in delivering food service.

FoodSpace joined the Sustainable Restaurant Association’s (SRA) Food Made Good programme in early 2017 and in just one year have been awarded three stars for sustainable practices for all their 14 locations in Ireland. One of their successful company-wide initiatives has been to remove single use plastics from all sites and replace them with more sustainable options, including fully recyclable cans, Tetra Paks and compostable paper cups.

Through partnership with Abbott in Donegal, who also have a combined passion for environmental awareness, FoodSpace successfully implemented a new and exciting environmental initiative.

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A&L Goodbody

Bank of Ireland

Earth’s Edge

KPMG

Volunteer Housing Law Clinic with Focus Ireland and Mercy Law

The Great Bank of Ireland Backyard Blitz

Explore, Experience, Evolve

KPMG’s Bold Girls initiative

The Great Bank of Ireland Backyard Blitz, now in its second year, was the largest ever Bank of Ireland volunteering project and saw hundreds of bank volunteers swap hedge funds for hedge clippers to give their older neighbours a ‘dig out’ in the garden.

On 22nd and 23rd June 2018, over 450 Bank of Ireland colleagues, Age Action teams and gardening experts mobilised in Dublin, Cork and Galway to mow the lawns, trim the hedges and generally brighten up the gardens and the lives of hundreds of older people. The event was part of Bank of Ireland’s wider commitment to Age Action as one of its three flagship charity partners in Ireland.

Earth’s Edge is Ireland’s first fully licensed adventure travel company. The Explore Experience Evolve volunteer programme was designed to utilise the unique skill set of their staff of outdoor professionals.

Earth’s Edge partnered with Warrenmount Presentation, a disadvantaged girls school in Dublin 8, to take four groups of students to the Barnaslingan Woods. The programme was designed to promote confidence, well-being and fitness amongst the students by offering introductory training in outdoor skills. The students, teachers and Earth’s Edge staff involved in the project are all very excited to take part in another outdoor adventure together! As well as being a fun day out for the students it will be a new experience for many of them too.

A&L Goodbody asks all their solicitors to volunteer 10 hours of free legal advice to the firm’s pro bono practice annually, which aims to ensure that volunteer solicitor time is spent on addressing unmet legal need in the community.

As the housing crisis escalated, A&L Goodbody were approached by the Public Interest Law Alliance to partner with Focus Ireland and Mercy Law Resource Centre. In December 2017, 67 A&L Goodbody solicitors undertook training in housing law with Mercy Law, which provided a base from which the solicitors could see clients through the housing clinic.

In little over a year the housing project has delivered 320 free legal advice consultations, end-to-end case work with 112 clients and 1,954 lawyer hours contributed.

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To address the lack of female role models in literature and to celebrate the centenary of women’s suffrage in Ireland, KPMG worked with Children’s Books Ireland (CBI) to develop a BOLD GIRLS workshop which consists of one class per week over a four-week period.

Volunteers from KPMG delivered the workshops to 32 different primaryschool classes around the country, explaining in detail about inspiring women from history/art/ everyday and how they were confident, brave and bold. In the last year, 60 KPMG volunteers have delivered the fourweek workshops to 32 classes, impacted over 800 students and donated over 1,000 books.

This initiative aligns with KPMG’s literacy programme, encouraging students to read while also supporting KPMG’s Inclusion and Diversity strategy.

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Dell

Intel Ireland

Legacy of Good, Making a Real Difference 2017-2018

Intel Involved Volunteers Making a Difference

By inspiring team members with their Legacy of Good program, the team in Dell Technologies in Cork were able to transform their impact on the community.

Over 22,000 volunteer hours were given to local community causes in 2018 alone, partnering with a range of charities and community groups, to apply their skills to make a real difference across 19 different organisations like Barnardos, the Special Olympics and Marymount Hospice and many more.Having a meaningful impact for their charity partners, making a real difference in the lives of local people, promoting interest in exciting STEM subjects and raising technology awareness across all generations, has provided Dell Technologies’ team members with opportunities to genuinely engage and showcase their passions and skills.

Deeply embedded in the Intel culture is a passion for community involvement and for volunteering in both the communities where Intel employees work and live. The involvement of Intel Ireland employees in their local communities has made a huge impact on local organisations, clubs and schools. Intel Ireland employees have increasingly found opportunities to donate the skills that they have honed at Intel—providing legal, human resources, marketing, finance, and IT expertise to schools, non-profits, and NGOs. Intel believes that these programmes’ impact are particularly significant, in part because financiallyconstrained schools and non-profits welcome the assistance they provide, helping them carry out daily activities and shortor long-term projects that they wouldn’t otherwise have the resources to complete.

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Microsoft Ireland

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Workday Giving & Doing

Microsoft Empowering Transformation at the Simon Community

Microsoft volunteers and the Simon Community formed a partnership to examine ways Microsoft could help the organisation operate more efficiently by embracing digital transformation.

A team comprised of Microsoft technology specialists, project managers and volunteers from both organisations was formed to look at the challenging areas for the Simon Community.

Microsoft Ireland assisted the Simon Community in visualising innovative solutions to improve employee empowerment, which was further enhanced by mobilising Microsoft’s employees volunteering their time to make a difference by creating rough sleeper packs, participating in the Sing for Simon appeal, participating in and collecting items for the regular soup runs, donating and distributing excess food and purchasing over 1,500 personalised gifts for the Simon Community’s service users at Christmas.

Workday’s Giving & Doing programme offers a wide variety of ways for employees to get involved in the community. Through individual volunteer rewards, team volunteer grants and employee donation matching, employees know that they work for a company that cares about their communities. Workday strives to support employee’s personal passions by enabling them to support the causes that matter most to them, whether it means mentoring students, early childhood education with Time to Read, and now Time to Count, as well as volunteering in clean-ups in local parks and beaches.

Workday also rewards the time and energy of their employee’s pursuits through charitable grants to these great causes.

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A&L Goodbody

Deloitte

A&L Goodbody’s Step Up Community Programme

Deloitte’s Difference in Dublin 8

A&L Goodbody (ALG) has a strong tradition of collaborating with and supporting the communities in which they work. ALG’s community programme ‘Step Up’ is focused on increasing opportunities in communities through education and employment initiatives.

The Step Up community programme is particularly focused on supporting those most vulnerable to social exclusion and to give young people in different communities the best opportunity to finish their education. Where possible, the programme supports communities in three ways: providing pro bono legal advice, volunteering of their people’s skills and annual core funding. Through the Step Up programme in education, seven access students participated in ALG’s Summer Intern programme and in employment, 121 new businesses were established through ALG’s support of Inner City Enterprises.

Deloitte has partnered with CBS James Street Secondary School since 2007, providing scholarships to enable students to progress onto third level education. To complement the financial contribution of nearly 100,000 annually, mock interviews are hosted annually for the students, career talks, and more recently the CR team advocated for the TY work experience programme to be made available to the students. In collaboration with Age Action, city centre based computer literacy classes are hosted

by Deloitte for the elderly all year round in their offices. Through the Solas Project partnership, Deloitte volunteers work very closely with the Dublin 8 Community through the Solas School programmes as well as the Compass Prison Programme.

32 *Large Indigenous Company LIC

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Gas Networks Ireland

Holmes O’Malley Sexton

Supporting STEM

Gas Networks Ireland is a big supporter of STEM education. Following the end of their threeyear sponsorship of the ‘Our Universe’ programme with Junior Achievement Ireland, in 2018 Gas Networks Ireland launched their new three-year programme, ‘Energize’, looking at 5,000 primary school students nationwide in the 2018/2019 academic year.

For many, STEM subjects are seen as being difficult.

Energize aims to inspire primary school children to engage with STEM subjects and see science as fun and interesting.

Through its sponsorship of the programme, Gas Networks Ireland aims to encourage the scientists and engineers of the future, opening the door to a career in STEM.

HOMS Solicitors Transition Year Programme

HOMS Solicitors provide a wide range of legal services nationwide, delivering quality, knowledge, experience and value; collectively working in partnership with their clients, investing in their people while supporting the communities in which they operate. As part of their educationally-focused CSR strategy in the community and marketplace, they provide their Transition Year Project. This project provides a Transition Year student with a structured and intensive week-long legal programme, twice a year, and Law Day with an all-female disadvantaged school. The short- and long-term impacts of this programme include education in legal areas, experience in the legal sector, learning in personal effectiveness and public speaking, along with introducing opportunities for careers in law to students in disadvantaged schools.

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2019

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Law Society of Ireland Diploma Centre Public Legal Education

The Society actively supports Public Legal Education through a series of initiatives led by its Diploma Centre engaging with solicitors, trainees, and the public.

Public Legal Education is a legal literacy initiative, that teaches people about the legal system and how law impacts on society, so they can better exercise their legal rights and responsibilities. The Public Legal Education programme is comprised of several initiatives including Street Law Schools, an initiative which places trainee solicitors, studying at the Society, in local secondary schools, to teach about law, Street Law Prison, which aims to facilitate a Prison Law ‘Know your Rights’ Programme and Solicitors of the Future, an innovative transition year (TY) work experience programme offered at the Society.

Mason Hayes & Curran

National University of Ireland, Galway

Engage & Educate Fund

The Engage & Educate Fund is a 450,000 fund and is a threeyear commitment between Mason Hayes & Curran, Social Innovation Fund Ireland and the Department of Rural and Community Development. The fund is open to projects that empower people through education to achieve their full potential and to contribute to their community. The fund aims to support projects with a focus on tackling the disabling effects on human potential of disadvantage, disability or migrant status. Eight inspiring projects across ten counties in Ireland have been awarded over 300,000 in financial supports to date, which has allowed these charities to have delivered services to 2,000 people and secured up to 600,000 in follow-on funding.

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Community Knowledge Initiative

The National University of Ireland, Galway launched a major project in 2001, the Community Knowledge Initiative (CKI), which set out to underpin and realise a civic mission as part of its core activities. The CKI was funded by the Atlantic Philanthropies and core funded by NUI Galway in 2007.The CKI’s activities were viewed as ‘integral to the University’s strategic mission and involved a fundamental examination of the role of the University in the social fabric’ and were subsequently reflected as a priority by NUI Galway’s Academic and Strategic Plans. The CKI aims to promote civic engagement through core academic activities, namely teaching, research and service at the levels of students, employees, courses, programmes and the institution as a whole.

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SSE Ireland Galway Wind Park Community Fund

As Ireland moves to deliver its 2030 renewable energy commitments, the Major Projects Fund also aligned with the Government’s recent Climate Action plan (and targets set out in the plan to retrofit 500,000 homes by 2030).

SSE Renewables and Greencoat Renewables through Galway Wind Park has set an industry benchmark for best in-class large scale project delivery.

As Ireland’s largest wind farm, it is making the most significant contribution of any renewable development on the island towards greening national energy and decarbonising power generation. In line with its core values, SSE Renewables and Greencoat Renewables have worked hard to ensure this project makes a genuine and lasting difference for local communities, now and into the future.

LIC *Large Indigenous Company

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Amgen Technology

COMMUNITY PROGRAMME – MNC**

GSK Dungarvan

VMware International

Making a Difference Amgen Dun Laoghaire’s CSR Programme

Based on positive employee feedback and very high levels of engagement with the Amgen Foundation’s three science education programmes (which have invested 600,000 in science education and reached 59,000 students in Ireland), Amgen Dun Laoghaire extended its CSR programme. With a budget of 80,000 annually, employees are financially empowered to support community projects, undertake educational outreach, volunteer in the community and fundraise for and support charities. Over 90% of employees are engaged with the programme which is cited as important for both retention and recruitment.

Amgen employees participated in different activities through the programme in the areas of education outreach, volunteering and charity support.

Supporting the local community to do more, live longer and feel better is key to CSR for GSK Dungarvan and its employees. As the largest employer in the town, the consumer healthcare manufacturing site has a very close relationship with both the town and the wider region of west County Waterford. In 2018, employees fundraised a total of 38,800 to purchase a wheelchair accessible bus for the local special needs school. GSK Dungarvan received front page coverage in local newspapers for their fundraising challenge, plus numerous positive pieces of coverage throughout the year. The volume of requests from charities/organisations across Ireland to GSK Dungarvan has dramatically increased also.

Intel Ireland Pride of Place

The Intel Pride of Place competition is about the enrichment of the lives of people in local communities of Leixlip, Celbridge and Maynooth.

Intel Ireland wants to give local organisations a helping hand to improve their organisation while also benefitting their local community and environment. The Intel Pride of Place Competition launched in 2015. Now in its fifth year, it aims to encourage the community to look at their local environment to identify issues they could positively impact on and devise innovative ideas to address them in a sustainable way.

To date, Intel Ireland has supported 25 projects in the local community and a further six have been selected in June, totalling 31 projects with an investment of 150,000.

Tesco Ireland Tesco Community Fund in 2018

Tesco stores are at the heart of hundreds of communities across Ireland.

Four years ago, the company saw an opportunity to forge closer links with the communities around their stores and so Tesco Community Fund was born. Launched in July 2014, the Fund has donated 3.7 million to 13,000 community causes to date. 2018 saw the fund achieve the all-important ‘one colleague, one project’ milestone, meaning that for every one of Tesco Ireland’s 13,000 colleagues, 13,000 local projects have been donated to. Tesco customers and employees are involved every step of the way in ensuring their iconic blue tokens find their way into the hands of consumers and the funds find their way into the hearts of communities across Ireland.

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**Multinational Company MNC

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Kickstart – Cloud Careers Program

VMware Cork and Technology Ireland Software Skillnet have been running the Kickstart – Cloud Careers Initiative since 2010 and the 16th iteration has just been completed. The programmes work with jobseekers from all backgrounds to prepare them for a successful career in tech. To date 365 jobseekers have completed the 4-month process with 95% of candidates obtaining a full-time position on completion of the programme. This programme has seen much success and is now part-delivered by past graduates who impart their knowledge and experience to new participants to provide a holistic mix of technology, work, professional and career skills. VMware’s example has also encouraged other leading tech companies to engage with the Kickstart Initiative and with the Technology Ireland Software Skillnet. The Kickstart initiative is now established in Dublin and Cork.

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Troca

Pat McDonagh, Owner Supermac’s, Trócaire Supporter.

“ my business

NT · INCLUSION · MARKETPLACE · PARTNERSHIP · VOLUNTEERING · WORKPLACE

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has helped children children go go to to

school and and provided provided

water to

vulnerable villages in in

zimbabwe “

Find out what your business can do by partnering with Trócaire: Please contact us on 00 353 1 629 3333 or visit trocaire.org Trócaire Head Office, Maynooth, Co. Kildare, Ireland Irish Charity No. CHY 5883

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Arthur Cox The Arthur Cox Work Experience for All Programme

For the past eight years Arthur Cox has run a work experience programme aimed specifically at students from less privileged communities and backgrounds. The goal is to encourage students to continue in education and to help them explore the possibilities that exist for them. Arthur Cox believes that high quality work experience should be for all, not just a select few. To date over 200 students have participated in this work experience programme, with 100 staff volunteers from Arthur Cox helping to ensure its success each year. The feedback from many of the participants is that they feel much more positive about the importance of continuing their education and that they also feel more informed about the business world.

Collins McNicholas In Pursuit of Excellence in our Expanding Workplace

Collins McNicholas has seen first-hand the stresses and strains that are associated with an unhealthy workplace.

Feelings like being stressed or unhappy at work, the burden of bringing work home or finding it difficult to balance work and personal life, can take their toll.

Therefore, recognising the benefits of having a happy and supportive work environment, by implementing office initiatives such as their Health & Wellbeing Calendar, and health programmes such as Employee Assistance Programmes and regular health checks, is paramount to Collins McNicholas’ success. By focusing on what matters to employees, Collins McNicholas has been able to deliver what matters to the business, proving that happy, healthy employees are the key to success.

36 *Large Indigenous Company LIC

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Energia Energia’s Values in Action Employee Awards

Energia’s company values were embedded through a two-year programme, the first phase of an ongoing values communications strategy, which focused on embedding Energia’s company culture as part of their business strategy.

A key deliverable was employee empowerment through these values, building towards our “Values in Action Employee Awards”, in which employees were rewarded for living the values. One of the key measurements of the programme was entries to the employee awards; Energia have met and exceeded this target, with nominations from most areas of the business.

The award submissions clearly demonstrated that employees truly understood how the values of being ‘Challenging’, ‘Expert’, ‘Resourceful’ and ‘Trustworthy’ link to everyday work and projects.

Gas Networks Ireland Walking the Talk – A Study of the Impact of Coaching While Walking

In 2018, Miriam Twomey, of Gas Networks Ireland, completed a Positive Leadership Programme.

In order to embed the learnings from the programme Miriam looked at ‘Walking the Talk’ coaching sessions, supported by one of the programme facilitators, Julie McCall and also by UCC (with Zelda Di Blasi), who were interested in supporting this research study in a wider context.

The research showed that there were many benefits to the walking and talking coaching style and highlighted that this style of coaching builds confidence and enables the participant to better manage stress.

Ervia are now looking at implementing the initiative and to embed it throughout the organisation so employees across the company can enjoy the benefits.

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Fidelity Investments Ireland The Fidelity Ireland Well4Life Program

The Fidelity Ireland Well4Life programme is a targeted combination of wellness offerings designed to encourage healthy behaviours; physically, emotionally and financially. Since Well4Life was launched the programme has been adapted based on employee feedback.

This year, the focus is on mental wellness, financial education and prevention of physical illness. The aims of the Well4Life programme are to identify the health needs of company employees, provide robust supports and activities in response to those needs, to encourage healthy behaviours physically, emotionally and financially, and create meaningful and continuous improvement of their workplace environment. Introducing on-site health checks and flu vaccinations were trialled and thanks to participation and feedback, they were made a regular part of the Well4Life programme.

Veolia Ireland

VMware International

Workday Wellbeing

Mental Health First Aiders

The Mental Health First Aider (MHFA) programme was launched during World Mental Health Week in May 2018, as an output of a Health & Wellbeing 2018 Strategy Project. It has successfully made the topic of Mental Health accessible in Veolia, through a variety of complementary communications and engagements across multiple channels, not least of which was a launch video featuring Veolia UK and Ireland colleagues speaking about their own mental health experiences. The project engaged with all colleagues to firstly identify MHFA as a key focus area, and secondly to call for volunteers to become Mental Health First Aiders. Veolia Ireland now have seven MHFAs active on the island of Ireland, with more planned for this year.

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Workday

The Cork Giving Network’s Mental Health Month

The VMware Cork Giving Network’s Mental Health Month has promoted and encouraged positive wellbeing since the outset.

With the daily themes focusing on positivity and self-assessment VMware Cork has encouraged employees to become more and more aware of not just the feelings of people they’re surrounded by, but their own feelings too. As a result of Mental Health Month, employees of VMware Cork are now more knowledgeable about the topic of mental health and are better equipped to deal with anything mental health-related. For VMware, Mental Health Month was about raising awareness and equipping employees with the necessary skills to help themselves and also others wherever needed.

Workday Wellbeing is rooted in four core pillars: Happiness, Nutrition, Movement and Health. This programme empowers employees to prioritise health and wellbeing in a way that works best for them through a wide-ranging selection of onsite services, speaker series, workshops and fitness classes.

Workday’s efforts to foster a culture of employee wellbeing, involving employees directly in initiatives, have resulted in Workday being recognised as the #1 Best Workplace in Ireland 2019. In addition, Workday was also recognised as a Best Workplace for Women, one of only thirteen companies to receive this recognition. Workday’s Wellbeing Centre has been extremely important in enabling the company to expand the range of onsite services available throughout the year.

MNC **Multinational Company

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A&L Goodbody ALGs Collaborative Project with the Irish Refugee Council’s Independent Law Centre

A&L Goodbody’s (ALG) pro bono practice is at the centre of their community programme, called Step Up, providing high quality legal services to community and voluntary organisations working for disadvantaged and marginalised people. In 2013, ALG began a collaborative project with the Irish Refugee Council (IRC) Independent Law Centre to develop a unique pro bono service for people claiming refugee status in Ireland, providing pro bono early legal advice and representation to asylum seekers who have recently arrived in Ireland, fleeing persecution in their home countries. Since the beginning of this collaboration, 118 ALG lawyers have delivered 5,432 hours working on 42 cases for clients referred by the IRC.

Arthur Cox

Energia

Arthur Cox and Amicus – Fighting for Justice on Death Row

Energia Netatmo

Arthur Cox launched its pro bono partnership with Amicus, a London based pro bono organisation, in September 2018 and is now part of a global team that provides legal support to people on death row in the United States. To date over 40 Arthur Cox lawyers have been involved in supporting projects that help to provide better access to justice and to raise awareness of potential abuses of the rights of defendants who are currently on death row. By working as part of a global team, the necessary resources can be provided for very complex cases. Working with legal professionals enables Amicus to guarantee the confidentiality of case materials while providing the highest standards of quality and consistency.

Dawn Meats Dawn Meats Sustainable Sourcing

Dawn Meats is committed to its goal ‘to be Europe’s most sustainable meat company’. Fundamental to this commitment is a sustainable supply chain. Due to scale of livestock sourcing in terms of spend and environmental impact, a significant focus is on this element. Sustainable sourcing is also central to non-livestock sourcing to ensure the supply chain’s integrity and minimise risk, such as modern slavery and adulteration. Outcomes from the project include a 54% improvement in gross margins for farmers who participated in the programme. As the future success of Dawn Meats is linked to the sustainability of its supply chain, Dawn Meats can, must and will continue to engage with its supply chain to drive sustainability.

EirGrid

Energia supplies 100% Green Energy to their customers and since 2015, has offered the Netatmo smart thermostat to their domestic customers.

Netatmo is a thermostat that enables a customer to change their home’s temperature from their bed or the other side of the world, allowing the customer to reduce their energy usage and carbon footprint. The business impact of the new Netatmo thermostat has included the increase in value from Energia to its customers, while reinforcing Energia’s brand values and helping Netatmo move towards meeting their Energy Efficiency Obligation (EEO) targets. Netatmo has also been able to help customers reduce their energy consumption by giving them more control over the power they use to heat their homes.

Pilot EirGrid Community Fund, MullingarKinnegad

EirGrid, through the implementation of the EirGrid Mullingar-Kinnegad Community Fund, has demonstrated its commitment to innovation, critical evaluation and knowledge sharing. While the genesis for the Community Fund was set out in a 2012 Government Policy Statement, EirGrid continuously went above and beyond in its implementation of the Mullingar-Kinnegad Community Fund. The published “plain English” summary evaluation, the evaluation report, the national workshop and the international webinar all emphasised active knowledge sharing. EirGrid’s practice was undertaken in the area of building social acceptance for new energy infrastructure. EirGrid’s end-to-end holistic approach ensured that their Community Fund had maximum local impact and focused on the areas of greatest need.

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Providing visibility to the significance of CSR best practices through the showcasing of the excellent projects at the annual CSR Awards is a responsibility which we at Chambers Ireland are proud to continuously commit to.”

Ian Talbot, Chief Executive, Chambers Ireland

Dublin Bus

ESB

Workplace Gender Transition Policy and Guidelines

ESB Traineeship Programme for People with Disabilities

As one of the largest transport companies and employers in the country, with over 3,500 employees, Dublin Bus is considered to be one of the most progressive employers for inclusivity and diversity among its workforce. As part of its commitment to support diversity and inclusion among its workforce, Dublin Bus launched one of the most comprehensive and advanced Workplace Gender Transition Policy and Guidelines in the country. This is part of the overall Dublin Bus Diversity and Inclusion Strategy which sets out Dublin Bus’s commitment to promoting equality, accommodating diversity, and ensuring nondiscrimination for Dublin Bus employees and customers. Implementing these values creates a positive environment for employees and a positive experience for customers.

The ESB Traineeship Programme aims to give people with disabilities the opportunity to avail of in-depth training and invaluable experience of working in a modern business environment. It provides the successful candidates with the opportunity for personal and professional development that is a tangible benefit when applying for future employment opportunities. Through the programme, ESB has successfully raised awareness, both internally and externally, of the challenges and barriers that people with disabilities have to contend with in their working and social environments. ESB is committed to creating and supporting a diverse and inclusive workplace. The Traineeship Programme is a demonstration of that commitment and an expression of our commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility.

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Fidelity Investments Ireland Inclusive Workplace Fidelity Ireland

In 2015, the Fidelity Ireland General Manager tasked HR with creating a key role: the Director for Workplace Inclusion.

This role sits within HR and, working with the business, identified business imperatives that drive the company’s inclusive workplace strategy, broadening the existing talent strategy that primarily focused on gender. Fidelity’s workplace inclusion strategy aims to enhance the diverse environment of their workplace and foster inclusion for all of the company’s employees. Through this strategy, 31% of Fidelity’s Technology graduate programme intake, between 20102017, have consisted of female candidates.

Future plans also involve the introduction of an Unconscious Bias campaign.

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Johnson & Johnson J&J Campus Ireland WiSTEM2D

The Johnson & Johnson (J&J) WiSTEM2D programme is underpinned by 13 global partnerships with academic institutions across the world; J&J have worked with UL for the past three years and this is the first year of partnership with UCC. In relation to the University Pillar, each student is allocated a J&J mentor, work placements are provided for a number of students, visits are organised to the various J&J manufacturing sites and campus outreach presentations are given to students. The key differentiator of this programme is the research element focusing on social and cultural capital.

Barriers around peer isolation, social bias, stereotyping and female self-perception were identified, which led to developing a peer network to further research these barriers being established.

Microsoft Ireland One Microsoft Diversity and Inclusion

Diversity is woven into the culture at Microsoft, who firmly believe that they can better serve everyone on the planet by representing everyone on the planet.

Microsoft’s campus at One Microsoft Place is home to over 2,000 people and over 70 different nationalities. To embrace the variety of backgrounds and experiences within their team, Microsoft Ireland have developed a multi-faceted Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) strategy that ensures every employee can live by their motto of: “Come as you are, do what you love.” A cross-section of employees benefitted from the diversity and inclusion programme. Microsoft employees at all levels received unconscious bias training and were equipped with skills to avoid discrimination of gender, class, race, or other forms of discrimination.

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Version 1 The Version 1 Diversity & Inclusion Initiative

Version 1 believes that their commitment to inclusion across race, gender, age, religion, identity, and experience allows them to build diversity in IT and a unique workplace. Creating an inclusive culture requires consistent commitment to having a workplace where employees can grow, and where their differences are celebrated. Through the Version 1 Diversity and Inclusion Initiative, their dedicated taskforce analysed the company’s internal approach to a range of topics, including gender, age, marital status, parental status, sexual preference, and religion, in order to ensure that their employees feel comfortable bringing their true self to work. In the two years since launch, the Initiative has helped Version 1 to establish a more diverse, inclusive and happy workforce.

The shortlist for the Chambers Ireland 2019 CSR Awards is particularly impressive and highlights the breadth and diversity of CSR projects being undertaken across Irish business.”

Theo Cullinane, Chief Executive, BAM Ireland

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2019

LACE · CHARITY · COMMUNICATIONS · COMMUNITY · DIVERSITY · ENVIRONMENT

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Acorn Regulatory

Earth’s Edge

Easytrip

Carbon Emission Offsetting

Easytrip Supports Blood Bikes

The Empower Initiative

The Acorn Regulatory ‘Empower Initiative’ was born out of a frustration that saw too many excellent and experienced women leaving work to take on caring duties. The initiative was developed to enable Acorn Regulatory’s employees to lead fulfilled working lives while remaining active participants in the workforce. Acorn Regulatory believed that the expertise of the staff that were being lost to them was too vital to let go and so they developed an initiative that allows all members of staff, irrespective of gender, to create a working life that best suits their individual needs. In doing so the company has been able to more than double its workforce and to grow its company.

Earth’s Edge is Ireland’s first fully licensed adventure travel company and runs expeditions in 40 countries around the world every year.

The Carbon Emission Offsetting Project was set up to counteract the company’s carbon footprint generated by their frequent air travel.

The aim of the project was to plant three indigenous Irish trees for every client who travelled with them in 2018. As part of the project, Earth’s Edge reached out to ‘Trees on the Land’, a cross-border initiative working to establish young native trees. ‘Trees on the Land’ helped Earth’s Edge to ensure they worked with landowners looking to establish continuous tree and woodland cover. The project was well-received by the company’s clients and supported by their employees.

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Easytrip has been supporting Blood Bikes throughout Ireland since April 2017 by supplying toll tags free of charge and covering toll charges for each of the charity vehicles. This initiative has not only supported the charity financially but more importantly saved valuable time for people in sometimes critical situations. When someone’s life is at risk there should be no barriers in the way to saving them. This initiative has allowed Blood Bikes to deliver lifesaving and timecritical medical supplies for patients in need in hospitals, medical centres, neo-natal units and hospices across Ireland.

Since introducing the toll tags for the Blood Bike group, journey times have decreased by 40 minutes on average per trip.

Himalaya Yoga Valley Cork Yoga Outreach Programme

Himalaya Yoga Valley Cork have been running a Yoga Outreach Programme for the last five years.

This programme, which has raised over 65,000 for charity, is designed to touch the lives of people in need through yoga. Cork Simon Community, Pieta House and Direct Provision have all benefited from this programme in Cork.

Yoga in the Park Cork is the largest initiative on the programme. This is a donation-based yoga class open to all members of the community, held in Fitzgerald Park in Cork City and Regional Park Ballincollig. It has raised over 60,000 for the Cork Simon Community and Pieta House. Over 450 people now roll out their mats with Himalaya Yoga Valley every weekend over the summer months!

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MKO COPE Helping Hands Project

SECAD Partnership CLG

Swords Pavilions Shopping Centre

Wild Work

Since May 2018, MKO, through COPE Galway, have provided volunteering hours to two estates in Galway, through the Helping Hands project. Melody’s Court and Whitehall Close are situated in Galway city and MKO visit both sites once a month. The main objective of these monthly visits is to maintain gardens, tidy shrubs, clean windows and generally keep the outdoor area looking well and healthy.

Working with COPE staff, MKO meet the estate volunteer each month who provides MKO with access, equipment and instruction for the tasks of the day. MKO staff thoroughly enjoy these afternoons and have received glowing feedback from residents of both Whitehall Close and Melody’s Court.

SECAD Partnership CLG helps communities and businesses to produce bespoke biodiversity action plans and deliver projects for villages, towns, businesses, schools, farms and other places. As well as being based on best practice, the approach laid out in each plan is always very easy to implement.

Wild Work provides indepth information about biodiversity, in terms of flora, fauna and habitats associated with specific sites. It also identifies all sensible actions based on cost, time and priority, that can be implemented onsite to benefit nature and people. The project follows a place-based approach, working with nature and the environment in a positive way to have a real and practical impact on environmental issues.

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Make Nutrition Your Goal, Fuelling Your Futsal

Swords Pavilions Shopping Centre had been looking to support an initiative that would encourage 8- to12-year-olds to play sport and to have a positive impact within their catchment area, by helping to develop skills within children which they may not have been encouraged to develop previously.

Swords Pavilions Shopping Centre partnered with FAI to develop a Futsal programme for children lasting six weeks, while also promoting the benefits of healthy eating among participants.

Working with nutritionist Richelle Flanagan, a booklet was produced for children to help educate them to have a better understanding of nutritional foods, to complement the exercise from the FAI’s Futsal programme.

Tico Mail Works Tico Mail Works Corporate Social Responsibility Improvement Campaign

The goal of Tico Mail Works’ Corporate Social Responsibility Improvement Campaign was to ensure sustainability, for the profits of the company to be sufficient to re-invest in the future existence of the company, for the employees to enjoy their work as secondary to their home life, and for the company to provide supports to the community and the environment to help make them sustainable also.

Another aim was to help achieve as many of the UN SDGs as possible, if not all of them. Some of the main actions of the project included improving the company’s data handling, a ‘lunch and learn’ company campaign and facilitating an electric car to work scheme for employees.

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CSR AWARDS

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Chambers Ireland would like to thank all the companies who took part in the CSR Awards 2019 Applications for the CSR Awards 2020 will open in March 2020.

For more information, please contact Carly.Mooney@chambers.ie

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Here’s to the future!

As part of our 150th anniversary celebrations, BAM is planting 150,000 trees in different parts of the world this year. 50,000 trees in South America, 50,000 trees in Africa and 50,000 trees in Europe will soon turn into forests, that will benefit our environment.

To kickstart the project over 100 BAM colleagues and their families helped NGO ‘Trees on the Land’ to plant 10,000 trees across the island of Ireland at Antrim, Cork, Fermanagh and Wicklow.

Building the present, creating the future www.bam150years.com

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